The Gladiators. A Tale of Rome and Judæa

by G. J. Whyte-Melville

  CHAPTER VIII

  THE SANHEDRIM

  The highest tribunal acknowledged by the Jewish law, taking cognisance ofmatters especially affecting the religious and political welfare of thenation, essentially impartial in its decisions, and admitting of no appealfrom its sentence, was that assembly of Seventy, or rather of Seventy-three members, which was called the Sanhedrim. This court of justice wassupposed to express and embody the opinions of the whole nation,consisting as it did of a number which subdivided would have given sixrepresentatives for each tribe, besides a president to rule theproceedings of the whole. The latter, who was termed the _Nasi_ or Princeof the Sanhedrim, was necessarily of illustrious birth, venerable years,and profound experience in all matters connected with the law--not only theactual law as laid down by inspiration for the guidance of the ChosenPeople, but also the traditional law, with its infinite variety ofcustoms, precedents, and ceremonious observances, which had been added to,and as it were overlaid on the other, much to the detriment of thatsimpler code, which came direct from heaven. The members themselves ofthis supreme council were of noble blood. In no nation, perhaps, was thepride of birth more cherished than amongst the Jews; and in such anassemblage as the Sanhedrim, untainted lineage was the first indispensablequalification. The majority, indeed, consisted of priests and Levites; butother families of secular distinction who could count their ancestors stepby step, from generation to generation, through the Great Captivity, andall the vicissitudes of their history, back to the magnificence of Solomonand the glories of David's warlike reign, had their representatives inthis solemn conclave.

  Not only was nobility a requirement, but also maturity of years, ahandsome person, and a dignified bearing; nor were mental attainments heldin less regard than the adventitious advantages of appearance and station.Every elder of the Sanhedrim was obliged to study physic, to become anadept in the science of divination in all its branches, comprisingastrology, the casting of nativities and horoscopes, the prediction offuture events, and those mysteries of White Magic, as it was called, whichbordered so narrowly on the forbidden limits of the Black Art. He was alsorequired to be an excellent linguist; and was indeed supposed to beproficient in the seventy languages, believed to comprise all the tonguesof the habitable earth. No eunuch nor deformed person could aspire to holda place in this august body, no usurer, no Sabbath-breaker, none who werein the practice of any unlawful business or overt sin. Those who sat inthe highest place of the Jewish nation, who ruled her councils and heldthe right of life and death over her children, must be prudent, learned,blameless men, decked with the patent of true nobility both in body andmind.

  The Sanhedrim, in its original constitution, was the only Court which hadthe right of judging capital cases; and this right, involving so grave aresponsibility, it was careful to preserve during all the calamities ofthe nation, until it fell under the Roman yoke. The Empire, however,reserved to itself the power of condemning its criminals to death; but nosooner had the Jews broken out once more in open resistance to theirconquerors, than the Sanhedrim resumed all its former privileges and satagain in judgment upon its countrymen.

  In a large circular chamber, half within and half without the Temple, thisawful Court held its deliberations, the members, ranged in order byseniority, occupying the outer semicircle, as it was not lawful to sitdown in the sacred precincts. That chamber was now the theatre of a solemnand imposing scene. The hall itself, which, though wide and lofty,appeared of yet larger proportions from its circular form, was hung roundwith cloth of a dark crimson colour, that added much to the prevailingsentiments of gloom which its appearance called forth. Over its entrancewas suspended a curtain of the same hue; and the accused who underwentexamination in this dreaded locality, found themselves encircled by anunbroken wall the colour of blood. A black carpet was spread on the floor,bordered with a wide yellow margin, on which were written in black Hebrewcharacters certain texts of the law, inculcating punishment rather thanpardon, inflexible justice rather than a leaning towards mercy andforbearance. The heart of the guilty died within him as he looked uneasilyaround; and even the innocent might well quail at these preparations for atrial over which an exacting severity was so obviously to hold sway.

  The Sanhedrim were accustomed to assemble in an outer chamber, and marchin grave procession to the court of trial. The crimson curtain, drawn byan unseen hand, rolled slowly from the door, and the members, dressed inblack, came in by pairs and took their places in order. As they entered,their names were called over by an official concealed behind the hangings;and each man notified his arrival as he passed on to his seat, by thesolemn answer: "Here! In the presence of the Lord!" Last of all, thepresident made his appearance, and assumed a higher chair, set apart alittle from the rest. Then the youngest member offered up a short prayer,to which the whole assembly responded with a deep and fervent Amen! TheCourt was now considered to be opened, and qualified for the trial of allcauses that should be brought before it during its sitting.

  On the present occasion the junior member was a Levite, nearly threescoreyears of age, of a stately presence, which he had preservednotwithstanding the hardships of the siege, and who retained much of hisyouthful comeliness with the flowing beard and grave countenance ofmaturer years. Phineas Ben-Ezra possessed the exterior qualities by whichmen are prone to be influenced, with a ready tongue, a scheming brain, andan unscrupulous heart. He was attached to John's faction, and a bitterenemy of the Zealots, by whom he had himself been formerly accused oftreasonable correspondence with Vespasian; an accusation that he refutedto his own exultation and the utter confusion of his enemies, but whichthose who had the best means of judging believed to be true nevertheless.He took his seat now with an expression of cold triumph on his handsomefeatures, and exchanged looks with one or two of the colleagues who seemeddeepest in his confidence, that the latter knew too well bodedconsiderable danger to the accused whom they were about to try.

  The Prince of the Sanhedrim, Matthias the son of Boethus, who had alreadyfilled the office of high-priest, was a stern and conscientious man of theold Jewish party, whose opinions indeed were in accordance with those ofEleazar, and who entertained, besides, a personal friendship for thatdetermined enthusiast, but whose inflexible obstinacy was to be moved byno earthly consideration from the narrow path of duty which he believedhis sacred character compelled him to observe. His great age and austerebearing commanded considerable influence among his countrymen, enhanced bythe high office he had previously filled; nor was he the less esteemedthat his severe and even morose disposition, while it gained him fewfriends, yielded no confidences and afforded no opportunity for thedisplay of those human weaknesses by which a man wins their affections,while he loses the command over his fellow-creatures. His face was verypale and grave now, as he moved haughtily to the seat reserved for him;and his dark flowing robes, decorated, in right of his former priesthood,with certain mystic symbols, seemed well-fitted to the character of astern and inflexible judge. The other members of the assembly, thoughvarying in form and feature, were distinguished one and all by a familylikeness, originating probably in similarity of habits and opinions, noless than in a common nationality and the sharing of a common danger,growing daily to its worst. The dark flashing eye, the deep sallow tint,the curving nostril and the waving beard, were no more distinguishingmarks of any one individual in the assembly, than were his long black gownand his expression of severe and inscrutable gravity; but even theseuniversal characteristics were not so remarkable as a certain ominousshadow that cast its gloom upon the face of each. It was the shadow ofthat foe against whom sword and spear and shield and javelin, bodilystrength, dauntless courage, and skill in the art of war, were allpowerless to make head--the foe who was irresistible because he lay at thevery heart of the fortress. The weary, anxious, longing look of hunger wason the faces even of these, the noblest and the most powerful behind thewall. They had stores of gold and silver, rich
silks, sparkling jewels,costly wines within their houses; but there was a want of bread, and gauntuneasy famine had set his seal, if not as deeply at least as surely, uponthese faces in the Sanhedrim as on that of the meanest soldier, who girdedhis sword-belt tighter to stay his pangs, as he stood pale and wasted inhis armour on the ramparts, over against the foe.

  There was a hush for several seconds after the Prince of the Sanhedrim hadtaken his seat, and the general prayer had been offered up. It was brokenat length by Matthias, who rose with slow impressive gestures, drew hisrobe around him so as to display the sacred symbols and cabalistic figureswith which its hem was garnished, and spoke in stern and measured tones--

  "Princes of the House of Judah," said he, "elders and nobles, and priestsand Levites of the nation, we are met once more to-day, in accordance withour ancient prerogative, for the sifting of a grave and serious matter. Inthis, the highest Council of our country, we adhere to the same forms thathave been handed down to us by our fathers from the earliest times, evenfrom their sojourn in the wilderness, that have been preserved through theGreat Captivity of our nation, that may have been prohibited by ourconquerors, but that we have resumed with that independence which we haverecently asserted, and which the Ruler to whom alone we owe allegiancewill assuredly enable us to attain. We will not part with one iota of ourprivileges, and least of all with our jurisdiction in matters involvinglife and death; a jurisdiction as inseparable from our very existence asthe Tabernacle itself, which we have accompanied through so manyvicissitudes, and with which we are so closely allied. That inferiorassemblage from which our chosen body is selected has already consideredthe heavy accusation which has collected us here. They have decided thatthe matter is of too grave a character to be dealt with by their ownexperience--that it involves the condemnation to death of one if not twomembers of the illustrious family of Ben-Manahem--that it may deprive us ofa leader who claims to be among the staunchest of our patriots, who hasproved himself the bravest of our defenders. But what then, princes of theHouse of Judah, elders and nobles, and priests and Levites of the nation?Shall I spare the pruning-hook, because it is the heaviest branch in myvineyard that is rotting from its stem? Shall I not rather lop it off withmine own hand, and cast it from me into the consuming fire? If my brotherbe guilty shall I screen him, brother though he be? Shall I not ratherhand him over to the Avenger, and deliver my own soul? We are allassembled in our places, ready to hear attentively, and to tryimpartially, whatsoever accusations may be brought before us. Phineas Ben-Ezra, youngest member of the Sanhedrim, I call on thee to count over thycolleagues, and proclaim aloud the sum thereof."

  In compliance with established usage, Phineas, thus adjured, rose from hisseat, and walking gravely through the hall, told off its inmates one byone, in a loud and solemn voice, then finding the tale to be correct,stopped before the high chair of the Nasi, and proclaimed thrice--

  "Prince of the Sanhedrim, the mystic number is complete!"

  The president addressed him again in the prescribed formula--

  "Phineas Ben-Ezra, are we prepared to try each cause according to thetraditions of our nation, and the strict letter of the law? Do we abide bythe decisions of wisdom without favour, and justice without mercy?"

  Then the whole Sanhedrim repeated as with one voice, "Wisdom withoutfavour, and justice without mercy!"

  The president now seated himself, and looked once more to Phineas, who, asthe youngest member present, was entitled to give his opinion first. Thelatter, answering his glance, rose at once and addressed his fellows in atone of diffidence which would have seemed misplaced in one of hisvenerable appearance, had he not been surrounded by men of far greater agethan himself.

  "I am but as a disciple," said he, "at the feet of a master, in presenceof Matthias the son of Boethus, and my honoured colleagues. Submitting totheir experience, I do but venture to ask a question, without presuming tooffer my own opinion on its merits. Supposing that the Sanhedrim should berequired to try one of its own number, is it lawful that he should remainand sit, as it were, in judgment upon himself?"

  Eleazar, who was present in his place as a member of the august body, feltthat this attack was specially directed against his own safety. He knewthe virulence of the speaker, and his rancorous enmity to the Zealots, andrecognised the danger to himself of exclusion from the comingdeliberations. He was in the act of rising in indignant protest againstsuch an assumption, when he was forestalled by Matthias, who replied intones of stern displeasure--

  "He must indeed be a mere disciple, and it will be long ere he is worthyof the name of master in the Sanhedrim, who has yet to learn, that ourdeliberations are uninfluenced by aught we have heard or seen outside thechamber--that we recognise in our august office no evidence but the proofsthat are actually brought before us here. Phineas Ben-Ezra, the Court isassembled; admit accusers and accused. Must I tell thee that we are stillignorant of the cause we are here to try?"

  The decision of the Nasi, which was in accordance with traditionalobservance and established custom, afforded Eleazar a moment's respite, inwhich to resolve on the course he should adopt; but though his mind wasworking busily, he sat perfectly unmoved, and to all outward appearancecalm and confident; whilst the hangings were again drawn back, and thetread of feet announced the approach of accuser and accused. The latterwere now two in number: for by John's orders a strong guard had alreadyproceeded to Eleazar's house, and laid violent hands on Esca, who,confident in his own innocence and in the influence of his host,accompanied them without apprehension of danger into the presence of theawful assembly. The Briton's surprise was, however, great, when he foundhimself confronted with Calchas, of whose arrest, so skilfully had Johnmanaged it, he was as unconscious as the rest of the besieged. The twoprisoners were not permitted to communicate with each other; and it wasonly from a warning glance shot at him by his fellow-sufferer, that Escagathered they were both in a situation of extreme peril.

  It was not without considerable anxiety that Eleazar remarked, when thecurtains were drawn back, how a large body of armed men filled theadjoining cloister of the Temple: like the guard who watched theprisoners, these were partisans of John; and so well aware were theSanhedrim of that fierce soldier's lawless disposition, that they lookeduneasily from one to the other, with the painful reflection that he wasquite capable of massacring the whole conclave then and there, and takingthe supreme government of the city into his own hands.

  It was the influence, however, of no deliberative assembly that was fearedby a man like John of Gischala. Fierce and reckless to the extreme, hedreaded only the violence of a character bold and unscrupulous as his own.Could he but pull Eleazar from the pinnacle on which he had hithertostood, he apprehended no other rival. The chief of the Zealots was theonly man who could equal him in craft as well as in courage, whosestratagems were as deep, whose strokes were even bolder, than his own. Theopportunity he had desired so long was come, he believed, at last. In thatcircular chamber, thought John, before that council of stern and crueldotards, he was about to throw the winning cast of his game. It behovedhim to play it warily, though courageously. If he could enlist themajority of the Sanhedrim on his own side, his rival's downfall wascertain. When he had assumed supreme power in Jerusalem--and he made nodoubt that would be his next step--it would be time enough to considerwhether he too might not ensure his own safety, and make terms with Titusby delivering up the town to the enemy.

  Standing apart from the prisoners, and affecting an air of extremedeference to his audience, John addressed the Nasi, in the tones rather ofan inferior who excused himself for an excess of zeal in the performanceof his duty, than of an equal denouncing a traitor and demanding justicefor an offence.

  "I leave my case," said he, "in the hands of the Sanhedrim, appealing tothem whether I have exceeded my authority, or accused any man falsely of acrime which I am unable to prove. I only ask for the indulgence due to amere soldier, who is charged with the defence of the city, and is jealousof everyt
hing that can endanger her safety. From each member here presentwithout a single exception, from Matthias the son of Boethus to PhineasBen-Ezra of the family of Nehemiah, I implore a favourable hearing. Therestands the man whom I secured at noon this day, coming direct from Titus,with a written scroll upon his person, of which the superscription was toa certain Gentile dwelling in the house of Eleazar, who is also presentbefore you, and purporting to be in the writing of that warrior of theheathen who commands the Tenth Legion. Was it not my duty to bring such amatter at once before the Council? and was it not expedient that theCouncil should refer so grave a question to the Sanhedrim?"

  Matthias bent his brows sternly upon the speaker, and thus addressed him--

  "Thou art concealing thy thoughts from those to whose favour thou makestappeal. John of Gischala, thou art no unpractised soldier to draw a bow ata venture, and heed not where the shaft may strike. Speak out thineaccusation, honestly, boldly, without fear of man, before the assembly, orfor ever hold thy peace!"

  Thus adjured, John of Gischala cast an anxious glance at the surroundingfaces turned towards him, with varying expressions of expectation, anger,encouragement, and mistrust. Then he looked boldly at the president, andmade his accusation before the Sanhedrim as he had already made it beforethe Council--

  "I charge Eleazar Ben-Manahem," said he, "with treason, and I charge thesetwo men as his instruments. Let them clear themselves if they can!"